


Be My Whole World But Just For Now

by sahyoschild



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Dahyun just wants to travel in peace, F/F, Jihyo is late for everything, strangers to whatever this is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:40:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25992280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sahyoschild/pseuds/sahyoschild
Summary: Boarding a flight for very different reasons, Jihyo and Dahyun, two complete strangers, are seated next to each other for a long overnight trip with nothing but airplane food, inflight movies and each other for company.
Relationships: Kim Dahyun/Park Jisoo | Jihyo
Comments: 5
Kudos: 87





	Be My Whole World But Just For Now

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally supposed to be for Dahyun's birthday months ago so umm it's a lil late but I hope y'all still enjoy it :))
> 
> Blame Dahyo being airplane buddies in seize the light for this.

Amongst the loud, grainy announcement of the flight starting to board and amongst the waves of people hurriedly crowding, rubbing shoulders and eagerly pushing each other like a wriggling organism, Dahyun stayed firmly in her seat at the terminal. She never understood why people rushed to the front of the line when they all already had their plane seats. She’d always escape the chaos, enjoy her iced coffee or the podcast she was listening to for a little longer and then join the back of the queue. Maybe she’d have to tell someone to get out of her assigned seat, but the slight confusion was worth it to avoid the mad dash. Dahyun did this on the flight to and from every work trip, and although this trip wasn’t work related, she did the same now.

Moving her focus from her phone screen, Dahyun noticed the queue had died down significantly, only a few passengers were left. She grabbed her boarding pass and passport from the front pocket of her backpack and then swung the bag over her shoulder, joining the back of the line. 

Rolling her neck and shifting her weight between her feet, Dahyun relished in the ability to move freely before she was stuck on a plane for multiple hours with no distractions, no connection to the outside world and her muscles becoming tenser than they already were. She hoped the trip would be worth the long overnight flight. 

Something new pulled Dahyun out of her repetitive movements. It was a distant noise. It sounded like a voice, but she couldn’t make out the words. Looking down, she pulled her phone from her pocket, but music wasn’t playing through her headphones around her neck like she had thought. Instead the voice got louder until the words were clearer, formed into a distant shout. 

“Hold that flight!”

Dahyun turned her head to the noise and saw the owner of the voice running through the terminal. The terminal was huge and the person was tiny, but Dahyun could make out the chaos surrounding the woman, cardigan billowing behind her like a cape and bag bouncing erratically in her hand from the effort she was putting into running for her flight. The same flight as Dahyun. 

“Excuse me, Ma’am?” Called the man who was scanning boarding passes and guarding the tunnel to the plane like Cerberus guarding the gate to the Underworld. At his words Dahyun realised she was at the front of the line, the last to board. She also realised that if she took the few steps towards the man and handed him her boarding pass the woman might not make it to the desk in time and she’d miss her flight and it would completely mess up her day, maybe even spiral her whole trip out of control. 

“Boarding is about to end.” The man confirmed Dahyun’s suspicions, completely unbothered by the woman in the distance racing to get to her flight. 

Dahyun took one last glance at the woman, people jumping out of the way of her jagged path towards her gate, then looking back at the man with a smile she dramatically released her grasp on her passport and boarding pass, her documents dropping to the hard floor with a smack. 

“Oops,” Dahyun exclaimed, an air of theatrics in her tone. She slowly bent down to pick them up like she had all the time in the world. But it was all for good reason, as when she heard the laboured breathing of the woman grow nearer she scooped up her documents, taking the casual stroll towards the man at the desk. He scanned her boarding pass with a hard expression which Dahyun met with bright eyes, even more so when he returned her documents and told her unenthusiastically to have a safe flight. She didn’t turn back to look at the woman, but she knew she had made the desk in time, words of apologies spilling out in between shallow breaths. 

A genuine smile landed on Dahyun’s face as she passed through the tunnel towards the plane. 

She reached her seat with relative ease. It stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the rows of filled seats as the one next to hers was also free; maybe the flight wasn’t as busy as the large queue had suggested. She had to find overhead storage away from her seat to place her luggage in, but it didn’t bother her. Instead she settled into her window seat and closed her eyes. She wanted to enjoy the last few minutes before the pilot’s voice crackled on the tannoy and flight attendants loudly ran through the emergency procedures. 

“What are the chances?” Dahyun heard a voice filled with amusement. It was closer than the other chatter on the plane and when no one immediately answered she gathered it was meant for her. 

Opening her eyes, she recognised the woman who had just been running across the terminal. She was a lot closer than the outline of a frantic woman Dahyun had tried to help, and now she could clearly see the sheen of sweat on her forehead and how pretty the woman was as she tried to catch her breath - less so from running but more at the anxiety of almost missing her flight. 

“Thank you so much for helping me just now. You don’t know how grateful I am.” The woman told Dahyun, running her fingers through her short brown hair and emotion pouring into her words mostly because she was still struggling to regulate her breathing and her heart which was hammering in her chest. 

Dahyun shook her head and waved a hand, almost dismissively, “Oh, don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”

“Well, it was something to me.” The woman assured her, her eyes slightly wider like she was thinking up the possibilities of what would have happened if she had missed her flight. 

Dahyun simply smiled up at her - closed-mouth and modest but glad the woman had made it safely on board - and the woman returned it and then took the necessary items from her bag and found a place for her luggage with the help from a kind flight attendant. 

She settled into her seat just as the pilot’s voice called through the cabin. 

_“Welcome aboard the eight-thirty evening flight from Los Angeles to Seoul. Our flight today will be around thirteen and a half hours, expecting an arrival in Seoul at two in the morning…”_

The pilot continued to talk but his words were drowned out by both Dahyun and the woman’s deep groans. 

“Is it worth it?” 

Dahyun looked over to the woman sitting next to her. Head against the headrest but tilted towards Dahyun, she looked intrigued, but also wore a soft smile like she was offering some comfort in the face of the long hours they’d be stuck on the plane. 

“Huh?” 

“Does the trip make the long flight worth it? It’s business for me so I think the flight will be more entertaining than the long week of meetings I have to attend.” The other woman explained, puffing her cheeks out tiredly yet dramatically. 

“Pleasure.” Dahyun hardly returned an explanation. She noticed the way the woman offered a little too much. It was friendly but Dahyun had had many a flight when others had latched onto Dahyun’s returned friendliness and took it as an opportunity to open the floodgates filled with hours and hours of pressing questions. Dahyun had learned from that. She was still polite, yet remained reserved. Read her book and kept to herself outside of exchanging pleasantries with flight attendants. 

And the other woman saw that reservation, it made her smile. She understood the apprehension, yet she still settled for pressing just a little further. Her mother would have cursed her for losing her manners if she didn’t. 

“I’m Jihyo by the way.”

“Dahyun.”

* * *

_[Twelve and a Half Hours Left]_

Aside from the scraping of plastic cutlery and faint mumbles between passengers, the flight was pretty quiet as everyone ate their inflight meal. It was past nine in the evening. Dahyun found it weird eating a meal at this time that wasn’t instant noodles or a tub of ice cream in front of the tv, clad in comfy pajamas, but she didn’t argue. She hadn’t eaten hours before the flight - her stomach twisting with nerves despite the countless times she’d been on planes - and welcomed the distraction of eating, a small chunk of time taken out of the overall flight time.

“Do you want this?”

Jihyo didn’t welcome her meal in the same way, Dahyun looked over to her to see her offering her chocolatey dessert.

“Are you not hungry?” Dahyun frowned, wondering whether Jihyo had a fear of flying, one that they’d both have to put up with if Dahyun had to offer her hand up for Jihyo to squeeze when the plane hit air pockets. It hadn’t reared its head during takeoff, yet if it did soon Dahyun knew she wouldn’t hesitate to help if the other girl needed it. She always tried to be kind no matter who she was talking to. 

“I’m not a big fan of airplane food but I didn’t have the time to bring my own food.”

“I guessed as much.” Dahyun didn’t have to think back much further than an hour at Jihyo’s dishevelled state to understand she didn’t have time to pack food. 

Jihyo picked up her dessert from her tray and offered it to Dahyun. It was like a peace offering, a proposition of friendship. Dahyun took it with a small “thanks.”

She didn’t need much encouragement. It was chocolate and marshmallow. Dahyun wasn’t sure what there wasn’t to like about that combination but the way Jihyo almost sighed in relief that the dessert was out of her sight and then pushed back her food tray, she’d definitely lost her appetite. 

“ _This_ on the other hand I like.” She turned her attention away from the discarded food to the cup of red wine on her pullout table. Her face lit up like all her ailments had been swept away as she picked it up and dramatically swirled it like she was at a wine tasting in a vineyard, drinking an expensive vintage from an equally expensive glass and not on a plane sipping a rationed quantity of cheap wine from a small plastic cup.

Dahyun couldn’t help laughing at the theatrics. “I hope you don’t like it too much or I’m going to have to save you again.”

“I promise to not make a fool of myself.” She sealed her words with a small cheers to nothing but air. Dahyun’s cup of orange juice on her own tray wouldn’t have the same effect. And then the majority of the playfulness was gone and replaced by sincerity, “Thanks again.”

“Stop apologising.” Dahyun laughed. She meant her words but couldn’t help the awkwardness that crept up on her as she received yet another unnecessary apology. She chose to laugh it off and tore off the lid of the dessert Jihyo had given her, accepting her apology with a soon-to-be content stomach.

* * *

_[Twelve Hours Left]_

“No, come on. Please no, you can’t be serious.”

Dahyun had zoned out. Book in hand but not reading the words despite her eyes scanning the page. Instead, her glasses slipped down her nose, completely lost in the hum of the plane and her thoughts on the trip that was to follow; the latter worried her stomach more than turbulence. Jihyo’s frustrated words and searching hands through her bag pulled her out of her trance.

“Are you okay?” Dahyun asked, pushing the bridge of her glasses back up her nose to rest more comfortably. 

Jihyo tore herself away from her bag and Dahyun saw lines of irritation weigh deep across her forehead and on her lips, pressing them into a pout as she sucked her teeth. “I forgot my headphones. I can see them on my bedside table right now. Ugh, I can’t believe I’m so stupid to forget them when I was about to get on a long haul flight.”

She huffed at the reality of her situation, of how she would spend the next half a day without the comfort and distraction that headphones brought. There was no other choice but to reach up to press the assistance button above her. Dahyun watched how it shone a weak crown of red light on the top of Jihyo’s head, turning her brown hair a deep shade of maroon.  
  


“Use mine.” Dahyun suggested a solution which Jihyo immediately dismissed with a furrowed brow and firm shake of her head.

“No, it’s okay, you need them too.”

“Right now I don’t.” Dahyun rummaged through her bag and pulled her headphones out in seconds, unlike Jihyo’s failed attempt. She pushed them towards Jihyo who shook her head once more. Dahyun countered.

“You don’t want those shitty ones they give you on planes. They’re so loud it’s not even worth plugging them in.” A voice of experience from the way those earbuds provided way too much discomfort in your ears for the underwhelmingly tinny sound quality. “And it’s only fair seeing you gave me some of your dinner.”  
  


“Oh, I was happy to, trust me.”

“And so am I now.” Dahyun agreed firmly. 

“Ma’am, can I help you?” A flight attendant with her most superficial yet soothing smile had arrived and cut the almost squabbling-like back and forth. Jihyo looked between her and then Dahyun who raised her eyebrows expectantly.

“Err no, I’m sorry. I thought I forgot something, but I found it.”

She gave a weak smile to the flight attendant to accompany the apology, which the woman took professionally and walked back up the plane assessing the needs of any other passengers.

“You don’t have to worry, I don’t have cooties.” Dahyun said as she passed her headphones to Jihyo, “It might block out that guy’s snoring too.”

A laugh spluttered from Jihyo’s lips. She covered them with a hand as she turned to see the man a few seats in front, not wanting to draw attention to them gawking at him. His deep snores weren’t hard to miss and neither was he as his head was leaning into the aisle, mouth agape and exposed to passerbys. If the food trolley passed by now, he would receive a rude awakening of being smacked on the back of the head.

“Thank you.” Jihyo said, eyebrows tugging close and sounding like a broken record. She was bored of it herself, but Dahyun merely nodded in understanding.

Dahyun turned back to her book. Back to scanning the page with no ingestion of the content, but this time, she was distracted by Jihyo who had plugged Dahyun’s headphones into the small tv on the back on the seat in front and was busy laughing to herself at some terribly cheesy movie. It seemed to be more than enough to preoccupy Jihyo’s attention and in turn, Dahyun’s too, as she couldn’t help smiling at how small and cute Jihyo’s giggle was when she tried her hardest to conceal her enjoyment from sleeping passengers.

* * *

_[Ten Hours Left]_

Dahyun was scared of heights, fiercely so, but on overnight flights the blinds were typically closed and when they weren’t, there was something soothing about flying above the clouds as long as you didn’t see the ground below. Despite this fear, she didn’t get motion sickness. Well, she usually didn’t. 

She could normally stomach her inflight meal and then soon fold herself into her small airplane seat for a nap or to read a book without feeling unwell from the turbulence, but now the ice cream that had been served as a snack less than an hour before was threatening to cause discomfort in Dahyun’s stomach due to Jihyo twisting and turning in her seat. It was a different kind of turbulence. One that only affected their two seats as Jihyo shifted uncomfortably trying to find the right position for sleep. A long and bumpy process of trial and error it seemed as Dahyun watched Jihyo hike her feet up to her seat, wriggle against the back of the seat but then soon change position as she already grew uncomfortable, all with her eyes firmly shut. At one point, she lifted her back off the seat and then pushed back into it to try another position with so much force that Dahyun thought she was going to have to grip the armrests. Instead she chose to huff out a laugh in disbelief. 

At this Jihyo peeled one of her eyes open, squinting up at Dahyun. 

“What?”

“Nothing, I just thought we were on a plane not a boat.” Dahyun joked. They might as well have been with how Jihyo’s force was simulating the choppiness of the ocean. 

“Sorry.” A grimace crossed Jihyo’s face. She looked tiny, curled up underneath the blanket the airline had given them when they boarded the plane. The blanket itself was small, it would barely cover the knees of a grown man, so it made Jihyo look even smaller. 

“Are you tired?” Dahyun immediately kicked herself for asking something so obvious, but couldn’t find herself wanting to drop the conversation so soon. 

She received a scrunched up expression from Jihyo in return. “There’s not really a lot to do.”

“That’s why you bring a book.” Dahyun lifted the book in her hand to emphasise her point. 

“I didn’t have time for that.”

Dahyun was curious. 

“Why were you so late?” Then backtracked, “If you don’t mind me asking.”

Jihyo sighed, a hand came out from the warm confines of the blanket to rub her face. “Some colleagues needed help so I left work late and then I took a nap after packing but my alarm didn’t go off - I must have only been half-finished packing when I fell asleep because I forgot so many things. And then my uber broke down less than a mile before the airport so yeah, that’s why I was late. It was just coincidence after coincidence.”

Dahyun’s eyes went wide at the long list. “Sounds like you have the worst luck.”

“The plane hasn’t crashed yet so I hope not.”

“There’s still time.” Dahyun reminded her and then received a smack on the arm. She didn’t know where it came from, especially so quickly, but she enjoyed teasing Jihyo and the way it made emotions surge across Jihyo’s face. Dahyun was also happy it distracted Jihyo from continuing to reprimand herself. 

Jihyo scratched her nose tiredly and then her arm retreated back under the blanket for comfort, curled up against her body like her other arm. 

“What’s the book about?” Jihyo gave a little nod toward the book that was resting in Dahyun’s lap. 

“Two strangers and a hot air balloon.” It was said so flippantly that Jihyo laughed in confusion. 

“I’m sorry, what?”

“There’s this girl whose family owns a hot air balloon so she rents it out for people to take trips in, and this other girl turns up for a date with a guy but she gets stood up. So she decides to take her on a ride to cheer her up.” 

“Does it work?” Jihyo was at least a little intrigued. 

“Yeah, so far but I don’t know about the ending yet.”

“That’s so weird.” Jihyo muttered distractedly. Sleep washed over her in waves. She tried to catch one as she burrowed further into her seat. 

“It’s cute and it’s preoccupying my time.” Dahyun defended, but Jihyo didn’t seem too interested, sleep starting to overpower her. 

“Whatever,” Teasing rang through Jihyo’s voice more than the assumed boredom as she closed her eyes, “I’m going to try to get some sleep.”

Dahyun was glad Jihyo’s erratic movements didn’t resurface at her words. A deep sigh and Dahyun saw her shoulders rise under the cover of the blanket for comfort. Dahyun thought she was asleep, all that tossing and turning a waste of time when she settled so quietly and quickly this time, but Jihyo’s voice muttered out. 

“Oh, and don’t worry, I don’t snore.” 

At this, Dahyun’s attention was drawn to check in on the man who was still firmly asleep, unlike the passengers sitting next to him who were kept up by his snores. Luckily Dahyun and Jihyo were rows behind. 

“I’ll be the judge of that.” 

A smile tugged up Jihyo’s lips. One that looked like she was dreaming of something so pleasant it manifested onto her face. Dahyun watched the way it faded as her body relaxed, finally catching and falling into the current of sleep. 

* * *

_[Seven Hours Left]_

“No, I can’t sleep anymore.” Jihyo announced a few hours later. 

She had meant it to herself but it caught Dahyun’s attention too as her words cut through the murmur and rattle of the plane. The cabin was dark apart from the occasional overhead light shining like street lamps.

Dahyun felt the same. Having tried and failed to get more sleep, she had settled for half an hour albeit interspersed with waking up from the uncomfortable seat or her head knocking against the cabin wall as the plane bumped around. She decided she’d sleep properly when she got to her hotel so picked a movie to keep her boredom at bay before Jihyo too decided she’d had enough of trying to sleep, noisily announcing her decision unlike Dahyun had. 

“You’re going to have to entertain me.”

Seconds passed as Dahyun looked back at Jihyo in disbelief. Her face was puffy with sleep but nonetheless just as pretty as she had been when Dahyun first saw her; unnecessarily pretty for an airplane ride Dahyun concluded, stewing in the recycled airplane air in her overworn and faded shirt and overall. She soon faked insult. “You take my things and _now_ you want my time too?”

Jihyo played along, gasping loudly and slowly moving to get up. 

“No no, don’t leave, come on.” Not being able to keep the persona up for long, Dahyun reached for Jihyo’s arm and begged her to stay. She recognised the joke but couldn’t help the slight panic that had settled in her eyes as she worried she’d offended someone she’d met only hours ago. Jihyo saw the panic there, sitting back down with a laugh. 

“We’re on a plane, Dahyun. I couldn’t leave if I wanted to.” She reassured and then added, “Which I don’t.”

Silence punctuated the end of Jihyo’s sentence along with a smile which Dahyun had to shy away from. She wanted to return it so bad but instead offered it with blushed cheeks to the back of the seat in front.

“Let’s play twenty questions.” Determination and excitement ran through Jihyo’s voice as she pushed the blanket off her torso to pile on her lap. 

Awkwardness pricked at the back of Dahyun’s neck, spreading down and turning into embarrassment at the idea of sharing fragments of her life through a game neither of them had played in almost a decade. 

Jihyo clocked Dahyun’s reaction. “You can lie if you want to.”

“Doesn’t that defeat the point of playing a game that’s sole purpose is to get to know each other?”

Jihyo tilted her head in consideration. “But I won’t know whether it’s true or not, will I? And anyway, we won’t know each other in…” She squinted at the screen at the front of the cabin displaying the flight’s arrival time. Her eyesight was becoming worse the longer she spent staring at project presentations for work, “... seven hours. We can lie and then carry on with our lives, thinking whatever we want about each other.”

Dahyun couldn’t imagine thinking anything bad about Jihyo. She was a little forward, but that didn’t put Dahyun off like usual, far from it, as she found herself agreeing to Jihyo’s childish offer of a distraction. 

“Sure.”

Jihyo’s face lit up and Dahyun decided it was worth doing something silly just for that. 

“I’ll go first,” Jihyo darted her eyes, finding a starter question with a frown until she decided on one and she met Dahyun’s gaze again. “What’s your job?”

“I’m an astronaut.” Dahyun nodded to which Jihyo laughed and raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“Wow, really?” 

Dahyun merely hummed out an agreement, nodding so smugly at the thought of such a prestigious job. It only worked to make Jihyo giggle more. So much for keeping things realistic.

“Okay, your go.” Jihyo insisted to Dahyun’s soon thoughtful expression. 

“What’s your favourite colour?”

Jihyo huffed out a laugh at the basic question - she hoped it was a warm up soon - but answered regardless. “Orange. Like sunset orange.” 

At Jihyo’s answer, Dahyun recalled the sunset on the taxi ride over to the airport.

“Hmm, what’s the weirdest thing you believe in?”

“Well, I think we’re going the long way around to South Korea for a reason don’t you think?” With a furrowed brow faking deep thought, it was said in a hushed whisper like it was top secret information Dahyun couldn’t bear strangers overhearing. Like she trusted Jihyo with the most sensitive material. 

Yet to Jihyo’s delight, she couldn’t contain her laughter at the thought of Dahyun as a flat earther no matter how fake it was. And soon neither could both of them as the questions and answers became more and more ridiculous, much to the displeasure of some passengers around them. They threw dirty glances and muttered disapprovingly to each other as Jihyo and Dahyun giggled at Jihyo’s job history as a trapeze artist or Dahyun’s story about how she got the scar on her knee from fighting a crocodile and not the reality of simply bashing it open playing around as a kid.

“What’s your favourite animal?” 

Dahyun was expecting a side-aching reply, but Jihyo’s eyes turned sincere. She barely let any time pass before she instinctively replied, “My cats, I love them so much. I miss them like crazy already.”

Dahyun saw Jihyo’s emotion in her voice and felt it settle in herself too. “I would have said my dog too. My friend is dogsitting him and she’s already sent me photos. Look.” She scrambled around in her bag for her phone, tapped the screen a few times and then her expression shone just as brightly as the screen as she showed the phone to Jihyo, complete with a picture of an incredibly fluffy dog looking inquisitively at the camera. The photo had been sent hours before whilst Dahyun was going through security. 

If the photo wasn’t enough of an indication to Jihyo, Dahyun was telling the truth. Not just within the parameters of the game, Dahyun had voluntarily offered Jihyo information about her life so willingly it surprised her. It was incredibly out of character for Dahyun within the few hours Jihyo had known her without interruption and she felt the pride warming in the heart spread to her face at the development. As Dahyun cooed at her phone and then placed it back in her backpack, Jihyo couldn’t help wanting to know more about the girl. She had given Jihyo the smallest of looks into her life and Jihyo wanted more, wanted to use that slither to prise it open further. 

“Have you ever been in love?” 

Maybe a lot further. Jihyo couldn’t help herself and she might as well pay homage to the way she and her friends used to play it as a kid anyway.

A few beats and Dahyun turned to Jihyo with a look questioning whether she’d heard her correctly or whether she was so tired she’d misheard a different question for one about love. But Jihyo’s face appeared curious and slightly apprehensive, and Dahyun knew she’d heard her right. She felt nerves settle in her stomach like she was a teenager playing this game all over again.

“Err, yeah. When I was a kid.” 

Almost automatically Dahyun’s eyes glazed over like Jihyo had triggered something in her brain and was immediately dragged down memory lane, although Jihyo couldn’t tell whether the journey was willingly or not. A few seconds passed and Dahyun shook herself out of her trance. She had company despite the form of these memories becoming more and more vivid just like Jihyo’s form was the closer the plane travelled to their destination. 

“Have you?” Dahyun countered to which Jihyo easily shimmied free. 

“Nuh huh, you can’t use my question.” Arms crossed and head shaking, a smile planted on her lips. 

“Fine.” Dahyun chewed her lip in thought, “Love, have you been in it?”

Jihyo would have said that was lazy, would have refused to answer it for a second time but the smug expression on Dahyun’s face at her own paraphrasing tugged at her and she simply rolled her eyes in a reluctant surrender. 

“A few years ago. We don’t exactly talk anymore.” Jihyo’s trip down memory lane was a lot shorter and left a definitive bitter taste in her mouth. It didn’t hurt but she still took a sip from the water bottle in the seat pocket in front to wash it out. 

“Ah, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.” Dahyun worried. 

“Nah, it’s okay. It’s only fair, I asked you.” Eyes soft, conforming Dahyun didn’t need to apologise. 

“Maybe we should stick to asking each other what pizza toppings we like.” Dahyun offered, running a hand through her hair.

“Maybe.”

They did just that. 

* * *

_[Five Hours Left]_

Thankfully for the other passengers, they had stopped playing games; still restless from the flight but more subdued. They had exhausted most activities on the flight, strolling up and down the aisles to stretch their legs and at one point, Dahyun had performed a dramatic reading of the safety procedures on the flight leaflet which made Jihyo cry with laughter.

As hard as Jihyo tried she couldn’t put off the reason for her trip any longer and reluctantly took to reading over her presentation notes. 

“What are you reading?” Dahyun asked. She was meant to be reading over some notes herself, but the pair had been talking for so long that a lull like this felt strange.

“My presentation for this drug convention I’m attending.” Jihyo saw Dahyun’s interest perk up at the end of her sentence. She laughed, “Trust me, it is not as exciting as you think. I’m not there to get high, but that would definitely make things a lot less boring. It’s just a week of meetings about the distribution and manufacturing on drugs.”

“You get to travel for it though. That’s nice.” Dahyun tried, but Jihyo only sighed. 

“I wouldn’t say staring at the four walls of a hotel conference room was on the bucket list of things I wanted to do when I came back home to Korea. I’d much rather be visiting my family here. Hopefully, I can find some time to do that later in the week.” She had been trying to muster up some excitement for this trip for weeks now. She had lied through a wide grin and faked interest whenever her bosses told her what a good opportunity this was for both her and the company. She couldn’t fake that interest now.

“Well, remind me to not come visit you. That sounds like a bore I don’t want to share.” 

“You’re not invited. We won’t be friends in five hours, remember?” A reminder of the brevity of their friendship - like she’d set a timer on her phone marked _stop friendship with Dahyun_ \- but Dahyun didn’t feel as at ease by that like Jihyo seemed to be. 

“What are you reading? I hope it’s more interesting than mine.” Jihyo asked Dahyun who was holding pages of paper with scribbles of messy notes dotted around the main body of writing.

“My speech. I’m maid of honour for a wedding this weekend.”

“Oh, that’s why you’re coming here. That’s so exciting!” Jihyo elated and reached out for Dahyun’s free hand, clutching it in anticipation; she loved weddings. Dahyun felt the same. She had always loved the pretty wedding dresses and dancing with other guests at the reception when she was a little girl and as she grew up she appreciated that a little less than the promise of a free bar, but regardless, still she enjoyed them. This wedding felt different. She remembered how she had told Jihyo that the reason for her trip was pleasure. She knew it was supposed to be a pleasurable trip, a celebration of love and union, but ever since she received the invite she had to remind herself and her face of that.

“Yeah, my childhood best friend is getting married.” Dahyun explained. “I haven’t seen her in a long while but I wanted to make my speech special with all the times we spent together so I’m trying to remember all the special bits.” 

The same distant look that Jihyo had seen before circled Dahyun’s eyes. It worried Dahyun’s hands and whole body too as she slumped her shoulders. Something clicked in Jihyo, she knew that look and soon realised she had misinterpreted love for pain. Unrequited love to be exact. She knew the path of unrequited love well. It stung. It stung hard and for a lot longer than it should when the person never loved you the same in the first place or in Jihyo’s case, when their feelings had fizzled out a lot sooner than yours; staying together only to keep up appearances.

So this time, she chose not to press Dahyun any further. She simply squeezed her hand, in a feeble attempt of comfort, let go and then left Dahyun to revisit memories, writing them down and reciting them in her head. She concentrated a little too heavy sometimes and Jihyo saw her move her mouth, forming silent shapes of words to help her memorise. Jihyo found it incredibly endearing.

* * *

_[Three Hours Left]_

“Do you think the airline has ever accidentally added _Final Destination_ or _Snake on a Plane_ to the list of films on here before?” Dahyun muttered as she lazily scrolled through the index of movies on the small tv in front of her. She wasn’t looking for anything in particular. Wasn’t looking for anything at all really, just mindlessly scrolling, something to occupy her thoughts.

“Why would they do that? This is the worst place to watch something like that. It would make you incredibly paranoid.” Jihyo looked shocked at the thought of that slip up.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” Jihyo remained confused, almost disgusted. “I don’t know. I always find myself thinking of films like that when I’m flying. I guess it’s a kind of morbid curiosity.”

“I wish they released something that didn’t involve murderers, malfunctions or poisonous animals on a plane.” Jihyo huffed, raising Dahyun’s curiosity.

“What are you suggesting?” She quirked an eyebrow.

“I dunno,” Jihyo shrugged but seconds later her face lit up, “a meet cute.”

Dahyun was less impressed with the suggestion. 

“A meet cute? I don’t think there’s anything cute about airplane food and minimal leg space.” Frowning, Dahyun reached behind her to retrieve the seatbelt that had been digging into her since she plonked herself back into her seat after going to the bathroom ten minutes ago.

Jihyo nodded eagerly, her eyes glossy with sweet imagination as she ran snippets of the idea through her mind like trailers at the movies. “Yes, there is. Where two strangers get their seats changed and end up sitting together on a plane and they fall in love throughout the journey.”

At the warm expression seeking confirmation for a brilliant film concept that would skyrocket Jihyo into Hollywood away from her boring day job, Dahyun could only offer her an awkward laugh. It was way too close to their situation for Dahyun to comfortably comment on. It made her mind whirl like they were plummeting through the sky and she turned a shade of red, blushing profusely.

“Well,” A dry cough scratched her throat as she tried her hardest to look anywhere but Jihyo, “I don’t think that would sell.”

Jihyo seemed more fixated on Dahyun’s dismissal, pouting in a way that made Dahyun very aware of how pretty Jihyo was and the thickness of her own shirt that felt like it was boiling her insides. She thought against asking a flight attendant to crack open a window. 

* * *

_[Two Hours Left]_

Dahyun sighed dramatically. To Jihyo, it felt like the hundredth time this hour. She had heard it before when she instantly guessed Dahyun’s answer correctly when they played eye spy or when Dahyun checked her watch and the time had only dragged on a few minutes since the last time she had checked. The air was thin up at this altitude and she thought to warn Dahyun she’d steal all the fresh air if she wasn’t careful, but then thought twice, simply chuckling to herself whenever Dahyun emptied the cavity of her chest. But this time her deep sigh was accompanied with closing her book a final time, nails drumming on the front cover. 

“Any good?”

“Yeah, I guess.” 

The scrunched up face and lack of enthusiasm surprised Jihyo. “You guess?”

“I’m sure the author was trying to do something poignant with the book but the two girls didn’t get together in the end.” Dahyun turned her attention away from her dog-eared bookmark in her hands and looked at Jihyo who was amused. 

“And you teased me for wanting a meet cute.” 

Dahyun shook her head at Jihyo’s laughter, “It’s not the same. I invested so much time into this book. They almost kissed but then they just went their separate ways. I deserve a happy ending at least.”

“But isn’t it more realistic this way?” Jihyo questioned, “Things don’t always have to have a happy ending.”

“In fiction they should.” Life was already filled with sadness and disappointment, Dahyun didn’t understand why someone would want to fill their free time with that too. She wanted to relax and unhappy endings definitely weren’t going to help. Jihyo persisted in spite of this.

“Fiction echoes reality though. People meet all the time and more often than not, they part ways.” Still facing stubbornness, Jihyo thought for a second or two, trying to find the right words to explain herself. “Do you believe in fate?”

“Sure.” Dahyun humoured Jihyo.

“Maybe the pair were fated to meet, but in the sense of gaining experience from each other and then moving on. No harm in it.” Despite the effort in Jihyo’s alternative interpretation, Dahyun didn’t buy it.

“But surely it was fate that she got stood up by a guy so she could meet the other girl. Too many things happened in a certain way so they could meet and fall in love. They’re supposed to meet for a reason otherwise it feels like they’re throwing away the bond they just created.” She had heard how fate works in mysterious ways, but there was nothing mysterious about this. Just poor writing and a book wrongly organised into the romance section in her local bookstore. 

“Hmm, I guess. Maybe it makes the book better if you look at it this way though.” Jihyo shrugged and Dahyun was reminded again of the brevity of things. Jihyo had a habit of doing that and it uncomfortably pinched in a monotonous way at Dahyun’s chest. She chewed the inside of her cheek.

“I still think they should have gotten together.” A pout remained firmly planted on Dahyun’s lips as she muttered to herself, Jihyo and the book.

* * *

_[One Hour Left]_

“It feels weird eating breakfast at this time.” 

Although it was the morning back in Los Angeles, it read one in the morning in South Korea on the screen at the front of the cabin; it also showed how the icon representing the plane was almost hovering over their destination, Incheon International Airport, on the virtual map. Dahyun couldn’t imagine how eating this late would help the passengers easily adjust to the time difference or beat the jet lag that would hit them as soon as they landed. But the food made her flight appear better value and she wasn’t about to argue with that. 

Jihyo had barely touched her breakfast, only picked at the fresh fruit in a sealed container. She didn’t know what classified as fresh when it came to airplane food. Her words said the opposite of her actions. “You’ve got to live a little, Dahyun.”

“I’m adventurous.” Dahyun countered adamantly which Jihyo merely snickered at.

Satisfied with her food, as much as she could be, Jihyo pushed the tray back a little and looked at Dahyun, questioningly. “When was the last time you were _adventurous_?” 

“I wouldn’t be travelling all this way to my best friend’s wedding if I wasn’t spontaneous.” Dahyun’s smug expression, like the small pot of yoghurt she drank, didn’t last long. 

“It’s not spontaneous if someone asks you to come to a wedding.” Jihyo corrected. “Spontaneity is gatecrashing a stranger’s wedding or running into the chapel and telling the bride you love them.” The enthusiasm that manifested into enunciating passionately with her hands died down when she remembered Dahyun’s situation. She cleared her throat and wrung the sleeves of her cardigan. “Err, not that I would recommend that.”

“Voice of experience?” Intrigue ran through Dahyun’s voice. 

“Oh no, I was just thinking about your case.”

Dahyun had been ready to laugh at the idea of such a dramatic declaration of love, so cliché, so overplayed and so not her, but nothing came out. Her words jammed in her throat and her smile sank.

“How did you know?” She managed to string out slowly. 

“I know what unrequited love looks like on someone. I’ve seen it in the mirror.”

A few more seconds passed. Dahyun dwelled in the pain of it. It had been so dull but now it stung sharply like a fresh wound again. Then she thought of Jihyo’s mutual understanding of that harsh aching. They seemed to have a lot in common for two strangers. 

Soon Dahyun shook her head. “I’m not in love with her anymore. I got over her ages ago, it's just coming back home and the thought of seeing her brings back a lot of memories.” 

The memories bombarded her whenever she closed her eyes or her mind simply wandered. They felt so familiar, so sweet and full of youth and blissful naivety. When she could put out her heart and let it run wild in the late hours of the morning, through the quiet streets with her best friend in tow without the fear or reality of being hurt. 

“I understand.” Jihyo nodded. “I’m gonna put forward my two cents for the last hour we’re together but you don’t have to take it at all, okay?” 

Jihyo waited for a sign from Dahyun, she wouldn’t dare interfere if Dahyun didn’t want it, but she received a nod in response, “I think it’s a really good thing you’re going. You’re being so brave by resurfacing all these feelings but I do think seeing her happy and seeing her in general might give you closure.”

Dahyun mulled it over. 

“She video called me a few days ago to check I was still coming considering the long distance and all. I told her I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Of course I wouldn’t. I asked her if she was nervous to get married but she seemed so happy when she spoke about her fiance. I’ve met her a few times before on facetime and she seems nice. A lot taller than Chaeng, it’s a struggle to get them both in frame, but they have the same stupid sense of humour. They’re perfect for each other.” 

Dahyun recalled the way it was like pulling on an old hoodie that night speaking down the phone to her best friend from the floor of her bedroom. A hoodie that originally wasn’t her own but was gifted to her. Her voice so comforting, her smile and eyes so warm; warm enough to wrap around her. They shone in the night, and then her face did even more when her fiancé poked her head into the screen. A pain in her chest formed but one she tried to itch away distractingly just as fast as it had surfaced. It was the pain that marked the end of a chapter rather than the pain of embers of love being redisturbed. Maybe a little jealousy that Chaeyoung had met someone who made her so happy, whilst Dahyun, what did she have?

“You have a stupid sense of humour too.” Jihyo teased.

“You know what I mean.” Dahyun gave Jihyo an unimpressed look despite how much her chest swelled at the comment. “I want her to be happy. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

“Of course, she’s your best friend, but you deserve to be happy too. The wedding could be really fun. You get to see old friends and maybe dance with a bridesmaid or two.” 

Dahyun smiled and nodded at the thought. At dancing and letting the past settle where it was. It evoked softness in her eyes as she looked at Jihyo and she felt like she wanted to ask her something. Something important. 

_“This is the pilot speaking. We will now be starting our descent so please return to your seats and make sure all blinds are closed and seat belts are on. Flight attendants please ready the cabin for landing.”_

Dahyun buried her thoughts in the formalities of the airplane procedure. It signified they didn’t have much time left and worked to unsettle Dahyun before the plane jerked around as they started the descent. 

  
  


* * *

The landing was particularly uneventful. A little bumpy at times and Dahyun couldn’t help reaching out to grab the armrest. It was an instinctive movement and so it seemed was Jihyo grabbing Dahyun’s arm. She wasn’t searching for her own armrest, she was searching for Dahyun instead, trying to comfort her subtly and non-verbally so as to not start a fuss. Then her touch was gone, like it was there for a fleeting second; like the ticking of the timer on their friendship made Jihyo skittish. Dahyun could hear it loud now. A painful background noise as people started to get up to retrieve their luggage from the overhead rack. 

Usually she’d wait for the crowd to die down like she did when she was boarding the plane; what was the point of getting an elbow to the face as someone wrestled to get their luggage down when she could wait and find hers easily? But this time she felt like she could wait even longer. Like something was pulling her to stay as long as possible in the plane as if her seatbelt was broken despite it unclipping with ease.

Thankfully Jihyo, having the aisle seat, passed Dahyun her luggage and then the pair exchanged small talk whilst crouching in their seats, waiting for the queues to exit the plane and leave breathing space for them. 

They walked off the plane, with a few polite thank yous to the staff, and then down the tunnel into the fluorescent lights of the airport, backdropped by the darkness of the early morning sky peeking from the windows. 

A few more minutes and they made it to border control. Amongst the group of people from their flight, they were separated. A security guard told Dahyun to join one line and told Jihyo to join another. The lines slowly moved up and Dahyun found herself passing glances at Jihyo who was meters away but was feeling the same pull to turn to find Dahyun amongst the line on the other side of the room. They passed small waves and silly expressions across the distance and Dahyun couldn’t help thinking this was a glimpse into their future.

The exchanging of a few documents and a few questions and answers, and then Jihyo and Dahyun were reunited, walking side by side up to baggage claim. 

The conveyor belt groaned into life seconds after they arrived and luggage started to appear, pushed through the teeth from the other side to be displayed and then claimed by their owners.

“How long are you here for?” Dahyun asked, squeezing the straps of her backpack and rocking slightly on the balls of her feet.

“I’m leaving this time next week. You?”

Dahyun tried to hide her disappointment. It would have been too good to be true for another coincidence.

“A little over a week. I thought I’d give myself a few days to recover from the wedding and visit family.”

“Smart.” Jihyo nodded and Dahyun hummed in agreement. She didn’t want to fly back home after a late night of alcohol and dancing resulting in an upset stomach and sore feet even before she stepped on a plane.

Dahyun recognised her suitcase as it rounded the corner of the belt. Undoubtedly hers as a colourful charm she had been given a few years ago by a friend was looped through the handle. It twinkled in her eye, waving like a kid to their parent when they came to collect them from kindergarten but Dahyun didn’t want to be reunited. She wanted to talk to Jihyo for longer. Wanted to string out the last few minutes for as long as she could manage. 

She thought against it when she saw an old woman eyeing up her luggage, debating with her husband whether that was theirs or not.

“Sorry, that’s mine.” Dahyun muttered as she brushed shoulders with them to tug her bag off the moving belt with a heavy sigh. 

She wheeled it over to Jihyo, feeling the awkwardness settle around them. 

“So umm, this is me.” Dahyun announced, twirling her suitcase on its wheels. It spun beautifully and filled a few seconds of silence where they found the right words to say.

“Thank you for being my everything for the past thirteen hours.” Jihyo settled with, her words wrapped in sincerity and her eyes gleamed.

Dahyun chuckled at the phrasing, it made her heart want to lurch out of her chest. Jihyo was right, they had been consumed in each other’s presence, pushed together but accepting it willingly. They were each other’s only source of comfort and human interaction, and if Dahyun’s catalogue of airplane buddies was anything to go by, Jihyo was by far the best. She didn’t leave Dahyun wanting to bolt out of the airplane as soon as possible for silence or space. Quite the opposite. 

“You’re welcome. I had fun.” An understatement, but Dahyun settled for it. She settled for silence too. It crowded them uncomfortably. Goodbyes always lingered, leaving more unsaid than done. 

“I’ll see you around, Jihyo.” An empty promise which Dahyun knew Jihyo would shut down. She did.

“Take care of yourself, Dahyun.” 

It wasn’t hopeful like Dahyun had been and it wasn’t harsh. Far from it. It was more realistic, prompting Dahyun to take in Jihyo one last time before she turned to wheel her luggage away. 

Dahyun walked a few steps and soon the ticking noise in her head stopped. There was silence, only the flurry of the airport around her, then a click and then a noise so much like an alarm. The alarm she heard every day when she woke up. The very same unnerving and irritating noise. Like every morning, she wanted to turn it off, press the snooze button and return to comfort. The comfort of knowing Jihyo, but Jihyo had set this alarm herself, this reminder in the hope to bring comfort to the two of them. She had tried to bring them together with it but instead it pulled them apart. Dahyun recalled how Jihyo had said people parted ways all the time. It was the usual, the mundane, but Dahyun couldn’t help thinking that the two of them meeting was anything but that. 

_Coincidence after coincidence._

Once more, Jihyo’s words rang in her head louder than the alarm-like sound. So many coincidences that tried to keep Jihyo from getting her flight, that she shouldn’t have made it. She should have been asleep on her mattress blissfully ignoring her alarm; grumbling in the back of the broken down taxi; arguing with the man at the gate to let her on the flight whilst watching it take off without her. Yet Jihyo had worked against all that to be there. To be there with Dahyun who had luckily halted the flight a few minutes for Jihyo to board. If anyone else had been at the back of the queue maybe they wouldn’t have waited for Jihyo, would have just handed over their boarding pass and smiled ignorantly as Jihyo missed the opportunity to hand over hers. 

These possibilities ran through Dahyun’s head and felt like a lot more than coincidence playing in their favour this time. Fate. A surge from the universe or maybe something less monumental despite how important it felt as it hammered around in Dahyun’s chest. 

Yet, there the universe’s influence had stopped. Jihyo wasn’t returning on the same flight as Dahyun. The universe had served them enough, but to Dahyun it didn’t seem like a definite ending like Jihyo had assumed, a reason to quit and accept their fate. Instead she saw it as a gentle push, encouraging them to find their own path without a guiding hand. To find it together, hopefully. 

She couldn’t argue with that. She felt the hammering against her ribs flowed down her body until it manifested in her legs, restless and eager to act and it caused her to turn and take a step back to Jihyo like her body was possessed but her mind remained determined. 

“Jihyo?” She heard the eagerness in her own voice. 

“Uh huh?” A mindless response to her name being called, like a knee jerk reaction, but Jihyo’s attention was on her own luggage she’d spotted, circling the belt slowly. She was trying to tug it off the belt as she answered Dahyun. 

Instinctively, Dahyun surged forwards. “Do you need a hand?”

“No, I got it.” Jihyo brushed off, cheeks puffing out as she successfully lifted her bag up and off the conveyor belt. She sighed and then stood up, a small smile on her lips as she saw Dahyun again. Like she was a sweet figment of her imagination, the real her having already exited the airport and hailed a taxi. 

“Was that all?” A pause over the last word. It echoed out of Jihyo’s mouth like she was eager to be proved wrong. It gave Dahyun hope. 

“Do you want to get a drink?” Dahyun blurted out, falling over her words from the force and nerves. It was like she was running out of time and she couldn’t ask the universe for any more favours. 

“Dahyun, I have meetings early in the morning. I need to sleep.” Jihyo’s smile faltered, she said Dahyun’s name with such a weighted sigh. Maybe Dahyun had guessed wrong but she hoped the rejection was more at the fact Jihyo was busy than the whole idea of her asking her to break their agreement. 

Dahyun tried again. They weren’t just here for the night after all. 

“Later in the week then?” Dahyun asked, eyes big with the possibility of meeting Jihyo again in this big city, outside the confines of a cramped plane. Then the thought hit her. She had the perfect place, if Jihyo would accept it. “Maybe two in the afternoon at a wedding reception? Would you like to be my plus one?”

Jihyo’s face contorted into confusion, not the expression Dahyun was expecting. “I thought we agreed you were going to dance with some bridesmaids?”

Jihyo was stuck in their agreement. Trapped in the idea that they had learnt from this experience and would move on. Dahyun couldn’t help thinking it was such a waste when they were in the same city for the next week, separately tied up in their own lives but taking in the same scenery. She couldn’t promise they’d cross paths, bump into each other on the streets, but she knew Jihyo would cross her mind many times throughout the days when she attended the rehearsal dinner or witnessed the exchanging of rings at the church. She had already thought about her and they’d only spent seconds apart. 

“What if I want to dance with someone else instead?”

Dahyun words hung heavy in the air, so heavy that it appeared like they’d filled up Jihyo’s mouth. She looked like she was about to say something, an autopilot reaction, but no words came out. Dahyun found it hard to believe that Jihyo, who always knew what and what not to say to her to ease her, couldn’t find the right words. Yet here she was, eyes searching Dahyun’s face but only finding sincerity and a need for something. 

She dropped her head, and with it would have gone Dahyun’s heart, but a small nod followed. Lifting her head up a little, Dahyun found Jihyo’s cheeks blushed red between her parted hair but also a smile on her lips. 

“Yeah, okay. I’d really like that.” Jihyo replied and soon her face glowed and Dahyun was convinced that she’d just stepped out of a spa and not off a long haul overnight flight. 

Dahyun’s face soon mirrored Jihyo’s as her mouth pressed into a wide smile, her cheeks would ache if she continued it for too long but she didn’t care. 

“Not sure I packed anything for a wedding though. Only work suits.” Jihyo let out a small laugh to which Dahyun’s chest grew tight but not with the panicked urgency of before. 

“I’m sure we can work something out.” Dahyun was sure that Jihyo could wear baggy pants and an old cardigan to a wedding and still be one of the prettiest women there. Dahyun knew it to be true since Jihyo had been wearing just that throughout the journey and she couldn’t take her eyes off her. 

“Do you want to split a taxi?” Jihyo offered with a shrug, a smile teasing her lips. Although coming to the realisation a little after Dahyun, she wanted to bask in Dahyun’s presence a little longer like over thirteen hours wasn’t enough for her. “As long as you can stand to sit next to me for another twenty minutes that is.”

“I’m sure I can manage.” Dahyun couldn’t think of anything she’d rather do. 

“Shall we go then?” Jihyo asked, so sweet as it dripped from her lips. Dahyun could get used to that word. _We._

She nodded, chewing her bottom lip to hold back her excitement. Once again, Dahyun offered to take Jihyo’s bag to which Jihyo declined but offered her hand instead, slotting her fingers in between Dahyun’s easily. Dahyun stole a glance at Jihyo, coy and eyes darting fast when Jihyo met hers with a soft expression. Youthful excitement fluttering inside of both of them. 

Hand in hand they wheeled their luggage with their other hands, weaving past other passengers who were reuniting with loved ones. Dahyun gave Jihyo’s hand a small squeeze for good measure and to check she wasn’t about to wake up from a dream, still stuck on the plane.

Walking out of the exit, they were hit with the cosy atmosphere of the early morning. They hailed a taxi easily, hands still interlaced and resting on Jihyo’s lap as they watched the world go by from the backseats. Jihyo spoke so animatedly about places she recognised from when she was younger and Dahyun listened intently, the streetlight reflecting in Dahyun’s eyes and making them shine whenever they shared a look. 

Soon they’d part ways, retreat to their respective hotels and private lives, but they would meet again, dressed up to the nines and there to witness another love cement and their own to bloom. 

It couldn’t come sooner. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and lemme know if your thoughts in the comments or on twitter (@ultjeonghyo).
> 
> I have other fics and pairings I'm trying to work on right now so hopefully I'll be back soon.


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